This morning I got up, looked outside and thought, “Enough of the wind and the clouds and rain. I need some sunshine!”
After a cup of coffee and breakfast, I checked my email. The first one I opened was from a friend who said, “Enjoy the great greening of the world out there. Wow, the rain is really feeding the earth! Plants and grass look vibrant!”
I smiled as I remembered a line from my recent sermon: “We all have a choice about how we see the world and our lives.” Then I started noticing the spring green color of the grass, the tiny plants popping up through the earth and the eagle flying by my window in search of breakfast. I know the sun is out there, and I know the clouds will eventually part. So for today, I will be thankful for the rain that is feeding the earth.
We recently held our quarterly meeting of TPUMMS (Twin Ports United Methodist Ministries). Gary and Sandy Winklesky are the representatives for Asbury. Our opening devotion consisted of three fun things.
The first fun thing was to share our least favorite hymn. That was interesting! The second fun thing was to share our favorite hymns. I noticed almost everyone had to share more than one. The third fun thing was to “pray in color.”
We started by writing our favorite name for God in the middle of a sheet of paper and then began making the paper a prayer space. We used colored pencils and markers to draw lines and make shapes all over the paper, in very random ways. We then added names and situations that we wanted to remember in prayer.
Sometimes I find that I am not very open to those new kinds of experiences, especially at Sunday afternoon meetings when I am anxious to go home. But I have to admit that it was fun. And I have found myself since looking up at my “prayers in color” to visually remind me of what and whom I am holding in prayer.
So for today, I invite you to join with me in being aware of how we are choosing to see the world and our lives. For today, I invite you to join me in being open to new things, even when we are in a hurry to get back home. And for today, I invite you to pray, maybe even consider “praying in color.”
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
—Philippians 4:6
Peace,
Cindy